An important and deeply personal ALS (Autograph Letter Signed) by Count Götz von Seckendorff, a courtier and devoted member of the household of Empress Frederick – Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and widow of Emperor Frederick III of Germany. Written from The Empress Frederick's Palace, Berlin, on 15 August 1901, only ten days after the Empress's death on 5 August 1901. The letter is written on official palace stationery bearing an embossed Imperial/Royal device and is addressed: “Dear Lady Lytton.” The recipient was Edith Villiers, Dowager Countess of Lytton (1841–1936), Lady-in-Waiting and a close member of Queen Victoria's court. Seckendorff thanks Lady Lytton for her words of sympathy following the Empress's death and gives a moving first-hand account of the sense of loss within her household: “Indeed, the loss of the Empress Frederick is a dreadful one and she will never be replaced again.” He continues: “I cannot tell you what a blank she leaves behind and how much we will all miss Her. That she is gone still seems to us quite incredible.” The letter also recalls episodes from the Empress's later life, referring to her visit to Paris and her last stay in Scotland, which Lady Lytton remembered affectionately, and noting how well and strong the Empress had still appeared. Towards the conclusion Seckendorff writes movingly of her release from suffering: “She has been delivered from her pain and is happy now, but what we all have lost no words will ever be able to say.” Empress Frederick, born Victoria, Princess Royal, was the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, wife of Emperor Frederick III and mother of Kaiser Wilhelm II. She died of cancer on 5 August 1901, only months after the death of her mother Queen Victoria. An unusually evocative mourning letter written from within Empress Frederick's own court only days after her death, to a woman who had herself been close to Queen Victoria, providing a compelling first-hand account of the shock, grief and profound sense of loss felt by those around the late Empress. Dimensions of each page: 20 × 12.5 cm. The letter is written on a folded double sheet forming four pages, three of which are written.
Auction 01: Auction 01 – Historical Letters, Documents & Autographs — Melis Antiques & Art